Control device



Dec. 11, 1945. w; (ELLE 2,390,581

CONTROL DEVICE Filed Feb. 22, 1945 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Fig.1,

Gttorncg Patented Dec. 11, 1945 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE CONTROL DEVICE Willis H. Gille, St. Paul, Minn., assignor to Minneapolls-Honeywell Regulator Company, Minneapolis, Minn, a corporation of Delaware Application February 22, 1943, Serial No. 476,796 3 Claims. (01. 2o1 4s) rotating members is utilized to position a movable control member relative to a stationary control member. Another object is to produce an improved control device of the general type shown and claimed in the copending application of Albert E. Baak, filed February 22, 1943, Serial No. 476,799.

Another object of my invention is to provide a novel bell-crank lever arrangement whereby the relative movements of two rapidlyrotating members are used to position a movable control member relative to a stationary control member.

Another object of my invention is to provide a rotatable driving member and a rotatable driven member resiliently connected together, and a first bell-crank lever pivotally connected to said driven member and having one end thereof engaging the driving member whereby said, first bell-crank lever is actuated by the difference in the rate of rotation of said driving and driven members for actuating a second bell-crank lever for performing a control function.

Other objects and advantages of this invention will be apparent from a consideration of the accompanying specification, claims, and drawings, in which Figure 1 is a cross-sectional view of one embodiment of my invention with certain parts broken away so as to better illustrate the same;

Figure 2 is a sectional view taken along the line 2-2 of Figure 1, looking in the direction of the arrows;

Figure 3 is a sectional view taken along the line 3--3 of Figure 1 and looking in the direction of the arrows;

Figure 4 is a sectional view of a different embodiment of my invention; and

Figure 5 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line 5-5 of Figure 4, and looking in the direction of the arrows.

Figures 1, 2 and 3 Referring now to the drawings, numeral I indicates a driving shaft on which a hollow, generally cylindrical mass 2 is rotatably mounted by bearings 3 and 4. The mass 2 is connected to the driving shaft .I by a suitable resilient spring member 5, connected at G'to the mass 2 and at "I to a collar 8 fixed on the driving shaft I by a set screw 9. The normal angular position of mass 2 on shaft I may be adjusted bymeans of the set screw 9. This adjustment of the collar 8 also functions to position the arm 24 in respect to the sides of the slot I4 and consequently governs the extent of movement of the rod IS from its normal position.

The mass 2 isenclosed by a housing In which isattached by suitable means (not shown) to a base II. The housing I0 and base II carry oppositely disposed bearings I2 and I3, respectively, in which shaft I is journaled.

Provided in the driving shaft I, as shown in Figures 1 and 3, is a longitudinally extending slot I 4 having a generally V-shaped cross-section, as

shown in Figure 3. The shaft I is hollowed to provide a passage I5 extending from the end of the shaft I into the slot I4. A thrust rod I6 is positioned within said channel and has one end thereof positioned within the slot I4 and the opposite end thereof extending out of the free end of the driving shaft I, as best shown in Figure 1. The rod 36, as willbe explained, is arranged for axial movement in relation to the shaft I and bears upon an arm I! pivoted at I8 and biased for counter-clockwise rotation about pivot I8 by a spring 20. The spring 20 acts through arm I! to bias the thrust rod I6 axially within the shaft I towards the left, as viewed in Figure 1. The end of the arm I] carries a slider 22 which bears upon an elongated resistance element 23. Thus, by actuating the rod I6 as will be explained, the arm I! may be caused to pivot at I8 in a clockwise or counter-clockwise direction, depending upon the direction of the rectilinear actuation of the rod I6, so as to position the slider 22 along the resistor 23.

Projecting radially into the slot I4 provided in the drive shaft I is an arm 24 of a bell-crank lever 25 pivoted on a pin 26 fixed inside the hollow mass 2. The end of the arm 24 is adapted to operably engage the end of rod l6 positioned within the slot I4 so that-upon rotation of the bell-crank lever 30 is pivoted on a pin 3I' carried by the mass 2 and extending parallel to the shaft I. The second arm 33 of the bell-crank lever 30 has a bifurcated end portion for engaging the bight of a U-shaped member 34 which is fixed on the shaft I.

As long as the shaft I rotates at a constant speed, the mass 2 does not moveangularly relative to the shaft I. Upon an acceleration or deceleration of the shaft I, however, the mass 2, because of its inertia, accelerates or decelerates more slowly, and the angular position of the mass 2 relative to the shaft I changes. A limited amount of such relative angular movement is permitted by the spring 5 and the slot I4; If the shaft I and mass 2 are rotating clockwise as viewed in Figure 3, an acceleration of shaft I causes the pivotal movement of the bell-crank lever 30 in a counter-clockwise direction, as viewed in Figure 3, which produces counterclockwise movement of the bell-crank lever 25, as viewed in Figure 1. The arm 24 of the bellcrank lever 25 thereby drives the rod I6 towards the right, as viewed in Figure 1, rotating the arm H in a clockwise direction and moving slider 22 to the right along the resistance 23. Obviously, upon a deceleration of the shaft I, the bellcrank lever 30 is pivoted in an opposite or clockwise direction, causing clockwise pivotal movement of the bell-crank lever 25. The arm 24 of bell-crank lever 25 then permits inward movement of the pin I6 under the biasing force of the spring 2| causing adjustment of the slider 22 to the left along resistance 23.

Figures 4 and 5 A second form of my invention is illustrated in Figures 4 and 5 wherein a rotatable shaft is indicated by numeral I and there is rotatably mounted thereon a cup-shaped mass I0l jourlongitudinally extending slot II4 formed in like manner to the slot I4 previously described and shown in Figure 1. A thrust rod II extends through a bore in the shaft I00 having one end within the slot H4 and the opposite end extending from the end of the driving shaft I00 in a manner similar to that previously described in reference to pin I6 shown in Figure 1. The

pin [I6 is arranged for axialmovement in relation to the shaft I00 within the shaft I00 soas to actuate the control arm Ill and move the slider I22 along a resistor I23. The arm II! and related structure is the same as that previously described in reference to Figure 1 and a detailed discussion of the same here is deemed unnecessary.

A shaft I25 extends transversely across the interior of the cup-shaped mass IN and is journaled therein at its opposite ends. An arm I24 is fixed on the shaft I25 and projects into the slot H4 A second arm I30 is also affixed to the shaft I25 and projects therefrom at an angle to the where it is engaged by an end of the rod preferred embodiments of my invention, otherarm I24. Mounted on the shaft I00 is a collar I3I fixedly positioned on the shaft I00 by a set screw I32. A lug I33 projects radially from the collar I3I and is positioned immediately below the end of the arm I30. A link I34 connects the lug I33 and arm I30. Thus, movement of the lug I33 in response to rotary movement of the shaft I00 relative to the member IOI will be conveyedto the shaft I25 through the link I34 and arm I30. Such movement will cause a rotation of the shaft I25 and the arm I24 to translate the rod H6.

As previously explained in reference to Figure 1 such axial movement of the rod IIS causes movement of slider I22 along resistance I23.

While I have shown and described certain modifications thereof will readily occur to those skilled in the art, and Itherefore wish my invention to be limited only by the appended claims.

I claim as my invention:

1. In control apparatus of the class including a driving member, a' driven member, a resilient driving connection between said driving and driven members, and one of said members rotatably mounted on the other of said members; the improvement comprising a first pin concentrically positioned in said other member and axially movable in relation thereto, a first bell crank lever pivotally mounted in said one memher, said first bell crank lever having one end operably engaging one end of said first pin, a second bell crank lever pivotally mounted in said one member, said second bell crank lever having one end engaging the other end of said first bell crank lever, a second pin mounted in said other member, the other end of said second bell crank lever operably engaging said second pin whereby upon relative rotary movement of Q said one member in relation to said other memher said first and second bell crank levers are pivoted in such a manner as to cause axial movement of said first pin for performing a control function, and abutment means adjustably limiting the relative movement of said driving and driven members and providing at times a nonyielding driving connection therebetween.

2. Control apparatus, comprising in combination, a rotatable shaft, a mass rotatably mounted on said shaft, means resiliently connecting said mass and said shaft to permit relative angular movement of said mass and shaft upon acceleration and deceleration of said shaft, said shaft having a slot adjacent said mass and a hollow portion extending from an end-of said shaft to said slot, a member projecting into said slot and providing a connection through which said mass may be driven by said shaft, a thrust rod movable within said hollow portion and engaging said member, means carried by said mass for moving said member upon-relative angular movement of said mass and said shaft to modulatingly position said thrust rod axially of said shaft and at a given ratio to said angular movement, said connected member being disposed to normally assume a neutral position, said resilient means being operable to yieldably resist departure of said shaft or said mass from said neutral position, means for altering the location of said neutral position and thus altering said ratio between said angular movement and the modulating movement of said rod, an elongated electrical resistance element, a contact slidable along said resistance element, and a connection between said'thrust rod and said contact for positioning said contact along said element.

3. Control apparatus, comprising in combination, a shaft, spaced stationary members for supporting said shaft, bearing means in each of said stationary members for rotatably mounting said shaft, a mass rotatably mounted on said shaft between said members, meansresiliently connecting said shaft and said mass to permit relative angular movement of said mass and shaft upon acceleration of said shaft, said shaft having a slot between said members and a hollow portion extending from said slot through one of said bearing means, a member extending into said slot and providing abutment means limit- WILLIS H. GILLE. 

